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PODCAST

Best Seat on the Couch

Alex, Iris, Marcus, and Michael

A podcast where 4 close friends discuss their favorite animated movies and TV shows together. Come for the intelligent discourse, stay for the lighthearted humor, and follow for the hottest takes.

leisure animation & manga

All Episodes

01:07:06

27 | ONE PIECE

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2021/01/12

With the main cast on vacation for the holidays, Alex brings his close friends Katy and Kyle to the Couch for a very special episode on wildly successful anime ONE PIECE, based off of the 20+ year-running manga series of the same name. At almost 1000 individual episodes spread over 20 seasons as of the new year, there is an almost insurmountable volume of content for interested newcomers, but Alex, Katy, and Kyle pose strong arguments and thoughtful discussions on what makes the series worth

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01:03:48

26 | Cowboy Bebop

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2021/01/05

In an effort to continue indoctrinating the gang with anime propaganda, Alex takes us back to the classics in our episode on 1997 sci-fi space western Cowboy Bebop. Wildly different from the animes of today and the ones we've discussed on the Couch, Cowboy Bebop infuses classical space western characters (including an excellent English dub, with smooth voice acting) with phenomenal jazz music, deep emotional moments, and old-timey action and chase sequences - in fact, there's a lot to discuss about

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00:57:17

25 | Princess Mononoke

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/12/22

The dynamic duo of Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli returns to the Couch this week with our discussion on the legendary 1997 film Princess Mononoke. Similar thematically to Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind which we discussed previously, Mononoke almost feels like Miyazaki's second, more expansive attempt at conveying his messages of environmentalism and anti-war sentiment, with his trademark strong female characters and Ghibli's gorgeous visuals. Stick around for discussions on the excellent

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00:57:22

24 | Rick and Morty

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/12/15

With six months of podcasting under their belts, the gang pivots into previously unexplored territory - adult animated sitcoms - with Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon's Rick and Morty, and a contentious first installment it is! Screaming sauce-obsessed man-children at McDonald's aside, the show is certainly written well, with a unique and self-aware sense of humor that few other shows can execute as well as Rick and Morty has through 4 seasons. But this show is hot for some and cold for others,

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00:55:33

23 | Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/12/08

A stark 180° from our previous anime discussions on Ouran High School Host Club and Madoka Magica, Demon Slayer is our first shōnen anime on the Couch and a phenomenal hit among Japanese audiences within the last 5 years. Alex once again provides guidance and insight into the weebdom as he hosts our discussion on the tropes of shōnen animes and their characters, comparisons (and differences) with My Hero Academia, character arcs in the first and second half of the show, and the demons of course

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01:01:01

22 | Ratatouille

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/12/01

The gang returns to Brad Bird's directorial prowess in this episode on Ratatouille, and boy do we have A LOT of discussion for you. For a children's movie, Ratatouille has surprisingly unorthodox plot progression and rich character growth in just under 2 hours of runtime, especially considering that the setting (Paris) and stakes (oh no! My restaurant!) of the movie appear more grounded and less fantastical than other Pixar greats like The Incredibles or Wall-E. Plus, there's tons of delicious

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01:04:41

21 | Gravity Falls

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/11/10

It would typically be sacrilegious to call a kid's show that released in 2015 a "classic" but Gravity Falls comes at you with a star-studded VA cast, engaging and mystery-centric plotline, and no shortage of downright silliness that make a very strong argument for best animated cartoon of the 2010's. It provides adorable entertainment for kids and subtle intrigue and mystery for older audiences, with special attention on the two twin relationships of the main characters, an extradimensional

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00:57:43

20 | Star Wars: The Clone Wars

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/11/03

Teased in many Best Seat episodes prior, Marcus's fanatical love for Star Wars finally comes to a head in the gang's discussion of the Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series released in 2008. With over 100 episodes spanning over 7 seasons, the series is far too vast to discuss in an hour, so key episodes were chosen for Michael and Alex to watch (and Marcus and Iris to re-watch) to get a feel for the incredible choreography, strong character development, and detailed Star Wars lore that are

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00:59:04

19 | Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/10/27

Western audiences know of Hayao Miyazaki thanks to Spirited Away, which we tackled a few months ago on the Couch, but it would be doing a disservice to the legendary Japanese director without putting a spotlight on his numerous other works, one of the very first being 1984 film Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. Created before the inception of Studio Ghibli, Nausicaä is a quaint but charming little story that highlights Miyazaki's emphasis on environmentalism and strong female leads that also

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01:08:36

18 | Puella Magi Madoka Magica

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/10/20

Alex ramps up the anime invasion on the Best Seat podcast starting with the 12-episode-and-follow-up-movie series Puella Magi Madoka Magica. This anime is a nice and light-hearted adventure story surrounding a group of adorable middle school girls who make a contract with an cute alien familiar to become titular magical girls, who use their magical abilities as well as the power of love and friendship to fight witches and grow closer as friends. There is no discussion on outlandish topics such as

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00:59:30

17 | She-Ra and the Princesses of Power

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/10/13

When Iris gets excited about something, she gets REALLY excited about it - Avatar is like that, Steven Universe is like that, and in this episode Iris gets to tell us just how much the Netflix original She-Ra and the Princesses of Power is like that. With Alex having binged the entire 5-season series in a week and Michael and Marcus having watched a curated selection of key episodes per Iris's recommendation, we all have unique perspectives on the show's characters, plot progression, and LGBTQ+

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00:46:32

16 | Mulan

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/10/06

Of the many legendary animated movies of the Disney Renaissance, Mulan (1998) cements itself as a particularly progressive, empowering, and inspiring entry that all five of us grew up with and have grown to love. In addition to Eddie Murphy's amazing Mushu and Disney's banger of a soundtrack, there's excellent discussion that Iris and Danielle spearhead in this episode concerning Mulan's struggle in a gendered system, the concept of character agency, and Mulan's propensity to succeed as herself

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00:59:42

15 | The Dragon Prince

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/09/29

In this episode, the Best Seat gang tackles the Netflix exclusive The Dragon Prince, the first show on the podcast that has yet to conclude as a series! Coming from Avatar's lead writer Aaron Ehasz, The Dragon Prince is already an excellent story three seasons in with a lot of room to grow as well, both plot-wise and in regards to its lovable characters (and thankfully, the show's animation style improves from Season 1). Marcus brings the heat when it comes to our discussion on the show's primary

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01:10:25

14 | Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/09/22

The second anime adaptation of Hiromu Arakawa's manga Fullmetal Alchemist, 2009 TV series Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood is one of Alex's all time favorites, and after having introduced the series to Danielle and Marcus years ago, he is excited to cover it again with Michael, Iris, and all of our faithful viewers. Tune in as we give special attention to the show's villains, the importance of the human condition, balancing humor with poignant moments, and just how great the English dubbed version

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00:57:11

13 | The Nightmare Before Christmas

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/09/15

Animated media comes in all shapes and sizes - a particularly unusual one is claymation, and Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas is perhaps the most critically acclaimed stop-motion animated movie of them all. Being another Disney mainstay, Danielle spearheads our discussion on her personal favorite movie of all time, and Michael contributes 3 scorching hot takes that sends the rest of the gang reeling in their seats. We conclude this episode with a mini-Trivia Corner, and all is revealed as

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00:56:50

12 | Weathering With You

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/09/08

Makoto Shikai's Your Name was a global hit worthy of a spot on our podcast, and to kick off Season 2 of Best Seat on the Couch, we head to Shinkai's next work in the 2019 anime film Weathering With You. It's another beautiful story with gorgeous animation and hard-hitting emotional moments that is best experienced without prior knowledge of its premise, and so I once again recommend you experience it on a clean slate, as we all did. And while we attempt to avoid comparing it to its

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00:56:29

11 | The Iron Giant

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/09/01

In this episode, high school friend and second-ever guest on the show Sarah joins us to discuss one of her favorite movies of all time, The Iron Giant. It's one of the first animated movies that used CGI extensively in the 90s, and is a charming story about identity and destiny with a truly legendary finale. But of course, in addition to our discussion of the movie, Danielle drops some knowledge on animation techniques, Sarah flexes her knowledge of the movie's many memorable scenes, and

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00:51:08

10 | Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/08/25

If you're not familiar with Scooby-Doo and the hundreds of individual episodes, movies, games, and other media showcasing the Gang's adventures in the Mystery Machine, you must be from the 1700s. Thankfully we are not, and so we dedicate this episode to the classic series and its iconic characters, humorous moments, and memorable catchphrases. For children this show does an excellent job at finding that balance between scary moments and easy laughing, and for adults it's charming to see the

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01:10:31

9 | Ouran High School Host Club

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/08/18

Ouran High School Host Club is a hilariously wacky Japanese anime that semi-satirizes the shōjo manga genre popular amongst teenage girls in Japan, which may seem like a pretty harsh 180 from our usual programming. But this anime, a Michael and Alex fan favorite, is deceptively complex and poses difficult questions on topics such as gender identity and power dynamics, which the gang discusses at length. That being said, we all end this episode with a lively Michael-hosted Trivia Corner, where Alex

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00:45:07

8 | The Incredibles

Best Seat on the Couch ·

2020/08/11

In this episode, the gang tackles Disney/Pixar's is-it-really-a-superhero-movie The Incredibles, with a little dip into The Incredibles 2 for good measure. It's a charming movie with memorable characters, extremely memeable quotes, and a deceptively complex villain, and one of the things we praise the most is how enjoyable this movie is for both children and adults, as it highlights (in an incredibly entertaining fashion) the reality of how a family lives with each other, superpowers or not. Plus,

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